Drabble Collection
by Andrea O'Down
Summary: A collection of drabbles from my drabble-challenge over on tumblr. (If you want to join, please check my profile page for more info.)
1. Where Your Heart Is

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for an anon who asked for "Home" and "Donatello"._

* * *

**Where Your Heart Is**

Donatello ran over the cold rooftop, reaching its edge and jumped over to the next roof without losing any speed. He kept running and jumping, running and jumping, the cold wind ringing in his ears the only noise aside from the constant mumbling of New York City's traffic and inhabitants. But the wind was closer, more real. It was right _there_.

He ran over roof tops and roof tops of buildings with lots and lots of apartments where families were having dinner now or children were doing their homework or watching TV or playing board games. But in a way they were all doing the same – enjoying being in their homes, their warm, cozy homes.

His home on the other hand was down in the sewers, an old abandoned subway station. And it was far from warm and cozy, it was rather cold during winter, and he could only imagine what it must be like to be able to open a window in the morning and inhale fresh air.

And they didn't even call it a home, they called it their lair. Big difference.

He sighed as he jumped down a fire escape.

* * *

When he pushed past the turnstiles he stopped for a moment.

Yes, this was it, his cold, not so cozy home.

He set eyes on his brothers who were gathered in the living room.

"Hey Donnie!" Leo greeted him. "Wanna join us for some 'Super Robo Mecha Force Five!'-episodes?"

"Sure thing!" Donnie replied with a smile and took a seat next to Leo.

And there, watching his favorite TV show with his brothers, a warm feeling built inside his stomach and spread through his body, making him feel warm despite the slight coldness of the lair.

What was the saying again? Your home is where your heart his?

It turned out, that Donnie's heart was right there with his family in an old, abandoned, cold, and not so cozy subway station.


	2. Secret Boyfriend

__For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)__

_This is for fivefootoh who asked for "Irma" and "suspicion". :)  
_

* * *

**Secret Boyfriend**

"Bye, Irma!" April called out as she ran past her friend. "I…gotta meet Casey now, for a…uhm…date. See you tomorrow!"

Irma replied to that with a little wave and a weak smile.

Was April really thinking she was that stupid? She shook her head.

April had been acting weird for way too long now, and Irma decided she had to get to the bottom of this…whatever it was.

Using a date with Casey as an excuse was just damn stupid. Irma had known that from the start. If April really wanted to spend time with Casey, then why did she always ask Irma to join them? No, this was weird, really, really weird.

* * *

With a sigh Irma looked down at the piece of paper. She had made a list of all the possibilities of why April would act that weird. And now she needed to go through that list once more and check what could be true and what couldn't.

"Dates with Casey" – Irma shook her head and struck that out. She had been through this already.

"Being in a secret society" – Irma had checked and double-checked if there were some weird signs on April's clothes or her messenger bag or even some tattoo – yes, she had gone that far to glance at her friend in the locker room before gym class, but hey, she was worried! –, and now, there wasn't anything. So she struck that out, too.

"Knowing about an alien invasion" – Gosh, she definitely shouldn't have watched this sci-fi movie yesterday! Just because the protagonist in that movie had known about an alien invasion because of his weird dreams and hadn't told anyone because that would have led into mass panic and chaos and because he had tried to handle this alone, didn't mean the same went for April. Struck out, once more.

"Having a secret boyfriend" – This was the last point on her list, and from what she could tell it was the only logical one. If April had a boyfriend and didn't know how her friends would react to him, she of course would keep him a secret. Or maybe she was afraid her father wouldn't approve that his little girl had a boyfriend. So of course she wouldn't tell anyone, so no one could blab about it to her father.

Irma sighed again. April should know her better than that. She would never give away her secret! She could tell her!

But yes, this was it, she thought as she tapped the paper where this last point was written down. April had a secret boyfriend.


	3. Ice Ballet

__For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)__

_This is for an anon who asked for "Casey Jones" and "figure skating"._

* * *

**Ice Ballet**

Casey took a deep breath, going once more through the routine in his head. There was this spin there and this incredible jump there and this axel jump at the end.

One more deep breath and he stepped on the ice.

Who would ever have thought that he would do figure skating one day? But his ice hockey trainer had asked him if he wanted to try it to improve his moves, and so far, Casey was doing a good job – as long as he could train alone with the trainer or practice in the ice rink long after the last ice hockey player had gone home.

His balance had gotten better thanks to this training, he had to admit, so he continued training. And believe or not, he actually had fun!

With a smile on his face he started skating and did his first spin, and then it was all about his routine, but he was still smiling when he did the axel jump at the end. And then it was over and he spread his arms as if to thank his audience although he knew no one was there.

Well, that was what he had thought at least, and his eyes widened when he heard someone clapping.

He looked over to the boards. And then his eyes widened even more when he found the turtles and April standing there. April was clapping eagerly while the others just looked at him with the biggest grins on their faces one could muster up.

"Wh…what are you doing here?" Casey asked and skated over to them.

"We thought you might want to join us on patrol, but turned out you were busy doing ice ballet," Raph replied with a chuckle.

"It's called figure skating!" Casey said. "And I do it to improve my ice hockey moves."

"Oh, I see," Raph said, nudging Leo. "Hey, Leo, maybe we should start doing ballet to improve our ninjutsu moves."

"I don't think you guys are going to find tutus that fit," Casey said with a glare.

"Says the guy who's probably hiding a pink tutu in his locker!" Raph said, and then he couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter, and the others joined in almost immediately, because they all now had this picture of Casey in a pink tutu in their heads.

Well, all except for April who moved closer to Casey.

"If my opinion counts for anything, Casey," she said just loud enough so he could hear her over all the laughter, "I think you did great."

Casey smiled at her. "Thanks, Red!"

And suddenly, all this laughter wasn't so annoying any longer.


	4. Funny Failures

__For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)__

_This is for nicollini who asked for "April" and "TV". :)_

* * *

**Funny Failures**

With a sigh April slumped down on the couch. This had been one hell of a school day, but finally, she was back home.

She reached for the remote control and started zapping through the channels. A smile appeared on her face when she found what she had been looking for, and pretty soon she was laughing like crazy.

* * *

"April, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come in here without your permission, but I called like three times and knocked at the window and…." Leo stopped abruptly as he entered the living room and found April nearly rolling off the couch in laughter.

"April, are you okay?" he asked.

"Yes, yes, I am!" April replied and beckoned him over.

With a frown Leo sat down next to her.

"Look at that! It's called 'Takeshi's Castle'," April said and pointed at the TV. "It's sooooo funny!"

Still frowning, Leo turned to the TV where some strange show was on. He got it that it was Japanese with English dubs and people, some of them in funny looking costumes, had to perform tasks, like crossing a mud pool. He still didn't understand why April was laughing like crazy when the third challenger landed in the brown sludge.

April glanced at him from the corner of her eye.

"Oh, come on, Leo!" she said and turned to him. "Don't tell me that's not funny!"

"I don't know, April," Leo replied. "I don't think failure is funny."

April rolled her eyes. "You ever going to give up on your über-correct behavior? Besides, I saw you laughing at your brothers' failures during training."

"That's something completely different!" he explained. "That's my brothers. I know them, and they know I don't mean to be rude. But a stranger wouldn't know that and maybe think I'm an impolite person."

April rolled her eyes again. "First, these strangers can't hear you and they know what they got themselves into and that people would laugh, and second, for heaven's sake, just relax, Leo! Laugh a little! It will do you good! And if it helps, imagine these are your brothers!"

And with that she turned back to the TV.

Leo watched her with a frown, then turned back to the TV himself. He could at least give it a try.

The next challenger was very tall and scrawny, so he decided to imagine him as Donnie. And then "Donnie" fell into the mud pool when he tried to jump to the next platform.

And before Leo knew what he was doing, he burst into laughter himself.


	5. Split Tongue

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_For an anon who asked for "Splinter" and "snakes"._

* * *

**Split Tongue**

Splinter walked over to the living area, glancing at the TV when he descended the stairs.

One of these documentaries his second-youngest son loved so much was on.

Splinter smiled. Donatello and his curiosity. He would watch anything to increase his knowledge.

But then Splinter froze as a snake appeared on the screen. His eyes widened and he stared right back at the snake, unable to move. The snake stuck its split tongue out, tasting the air, tasting it for something edible, tasting the air for _him_. Its staring eyes were looking right at him, making his body stiff. He felt like he was weighing a ton and could never move again.

"Sensei?" Donatello asked. "Are you okay?"

A slight flash ran through Splinter's body and he finally managed to drag his eyes away from the snake.

"Yes, Donatello, I am," he said, as he buried his face in his hand. "Just a headache. I'll go back to the dojo."

"Okay, sensei. If you need anything, let me know."

"Thank you, my son."

* * *

Back in the dojo, Splinter sank to his knees, pressing a hand against his forehead. These eyes, these dark, staring eyes, looking for him! This tongue, this split tongue tasting the air to find him!

He shook his head, trying to make this terrible feeling go away. He felt like…prey. No, he _was_ prey! And he hated it!

He took a deep breath. Since when were snakes a problem? They never had been! Not back in Japan, not here in New York, not before…

Yes, not before his mutation. His mutation had turned him into a rat, snake's prey. It was the same with cats. They had never been a problem either before his mutation, now they were. And so were snakes.

Staring eyes, split tongue… He shook his head fiercely. He needed to meditate. Maybe this would make this feeling go away.

He took another deep breath, but before he could calm down, the image of the snake appeared again in front of his mind's eye, sending a cold shiver through his body.

He sighed, concentrating on his breathing and finally reaching the calm state he had been going for.

But deep down inside him he knew that this split tongue, these staring eyes, this _snake_ would be haunting him for a few days…


	6. Worth It

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_For red-eyed-jaguar who asked for "Friendship" and "Leatherhead"._

* * *

**Worth It**

Leatherhead had never thought of himself as someone who would ever have friends. He had always thought of himself as a monster. And a monster he was. An anger-driven, uncontrollable, Kraang-crushing monster.

KRAANG!

The word alone made him growl, made the anger inside him burn so brightly it would make him lose control sooner or later.

He took a deep breath, then another one.

Cleansing breaths, like Michelangelo called them. And it helped. Everything Michelangelo had ever told him helped.

Cleansing breaths helped, remembering that he was safe helped, but even more importantly, the thought of Michelangelo helped, his innocent, trusting face, his kind and wise words.

_Or maybe you just think you're a monster because everyone treats you that way._

Yes, maybe. But he still thought of himself as a monster of some sort, especially when he was angry.

But thanks to Michelangelo and his unswerving faith in the good in everyone's heart, Leatherhead now was a monster with friends. And that was more than he had ever asked for, more than he had ever allowed himself to dream of. And he had realized that he was worth more than he had ever thought. He was worth to have friends.

And Leatherhead had sworn he would always be worth the trust his friends had in him, he would always be worth their friendship.

He would give his life to save his friends. They trusted him, something no one else had ever done before. And he trusted them, with all his heart. They thought he was worth to be their friend, and he would never let anything prove them wrong.

He would fight till the last breath for Michelangelo and his brothers, he would give his life for them without even thinking about it.

They were worth it.


	7. Left Out

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_For an anon who asked for "Irma" and "third wheel"._

* * *

**Left Out**

And again, they had taken off without her. Irma watched Casey and April running down the street because of some emergency at home, but Irma had the bad feeling that this was a lie. There most probably was no emergency at home.

Heck, they hadn't even said at whose home the emergency had occurred! April's or Casey's? Oh, who cared!?

The truth was that they had left her behind again.

Irma lowered her gaze and started walking down the street. This was so unfair! Why didn't they let her in on the fun?

Okay, maybe it wasn't fun, maybe it was dangerous, but she didn't care! She was sick of being left behind. She was forced to miss out and she didn't even know why!

And she was even sure what made her angrier – the fact that her friends – if Casey could be called a friend, that was, which she highly doubted – lied to her or her lack of knowledge of what really was going on? Both hurt, the lack of knowledge maybe a little more. She had always been a curious person.

Plus, Casey's comment about the "third wheel" was still ringing in her head.

It hurt, yes, but what hurt even more was that he was right. She was the third wheel, she truly was!

A cold shiver ran down her spine and she suddenly felt very cold. She crossed her arms over her chest, rubbing her upper arms with her hands, but it didn't help.

She felt so alone, so left out, so very much like the third wheel.

She growled.

It just wasn't fair!

She took out her phone and texted a message to April. She somehow had to phrase her anger.

_Wasn't very nice to ditch me. Again!_

* * *

The reply came in the middle of the night.

_Sorry, Irma, it was an emergency. Had no choice. Wanna watch a movie tomorrow night? To make up for it, the popcorn is on me._

And although Irma was angry and a bit cranky because the message's beep had woken her up and she had hit her hand on the bedside table when she had reached for her glasses, she couldn't help, but smile a little.

At least April still cared about her. She didn't feel that left out any longer.

Plus, she could deal with her lack of knowledge later. She was so going to find out what was going on here!


	8. Always There

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for gorgonscales who asked for "Splinter" and "adorableness"._

* * *

**Always There**

With a sigh Splinter kneeled down on the floor under the tree in the dojo, like he did every night, meditating a little before he went to bed.

He felt so exhausted, so totally exhausted.

One must have thought being a ninja master for so many years would have prepared him to deal with four five-year-old mutant turtles, but no, it hadn't! They were his sons and he loved them to pieces, but he still was very exhausted each and every night after he had brought them to bed, following the descending order of their age, or at least what he had decided this to be. He had no idea whom of them had hatched first, so he had decided to make Leonardo the oldest, then came Raphael, then Donatello, and Michelangelo was the youngest. And this was the order for wishing them a good night, bringing each of them to their rooms – Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, Michelangelo. Michelangelo always took the longest to be tucked in with all his energy that didn't allow him to calm down too quickly, but at some point Splinter always succeeded.

Splinter heard something and quickly opened his eyes, finding said son standing in the entrance of the dojo, hugging his favorite teddy bear to his chest.

"Michelangelo, why aren't you asleep?" Splinter asked, but when he saw the tears in his son's eyes, he frowned. "What happened, my son?"

"Bad dream," the young turtle replied, and Splinter immediately opened his arms.

Mikey darted over to him, burying his little face in his father's chest.

Splinter just rubbed his carapace gently and waited for Mikey to calm down.

"What did you dream, my son?" he asked when Mikey sat up and whipped away his tears with his fingers.

"Monsters! They were chasing me and I was all alone! No one was there! I was so afraid!"

"How terrible," Splinter said. "But you must know, my son, it was pretty obvious that it was just a dream."

Mikey looked at him with big eyes.

"Well, you said you were alone," Splinter explained. "And if some monsters attacked you, you'd never be alone. I'll always be there to protect you."

"But they were biiiiiiig!" Mikey said.

"And your father is a great ninja master. Besides, if I can handle you and your brothers, I think I can handle anything," Splinter replied with a smile, gently pinching Mikey's cheek.

Mikey laughed and playfully slapped Splinter's hand away.

He then looked at his father with his big, trusting eyes.

"Thank you, Daddy!"

He wrapped his arms around Splinter, snuggling into his warm chest.

Splinter just stroked his shell, and pretty soon, Mikey's body relaxed and all that could be heard was his calm breathing as he had fallen asleep right there.

Splinter just looked at Michelangelo with a warm smile.

"I hope you're dreaming of rainbows now, my son."

Mikey mumbled something in his sleep, and Splinter decided to take that as a yes.


	9. Super Mikey

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for LimitLine who asked for "Mikey" and "superheroes". :)_

* * *

**Super Mikey**

Mikey loved it when Splinter came back from his topside-runs. He always had this duffel bag with him, and when he returned, it was full of treasures.

And when Splinter was done with putting the things they absolutely needed in the kitchen – like the food or the dented frying pan or the chopsticks –, he returned to the living room, and what was left in the duffel bag then, was for them, their gifts. It was the moment, Mikey nearly couldn't hold himself back any longer. But he always waited, forcing his little body to remain still on the couch – or as still as he could manage because there always was a little shifting involved.

And tonight was no exception.

His eyes were growing bigger and bigger as Splinter was walking over to the pit, and when he opened the duffel bag when he had reached his waiting sons, Mikey nearly yelped in joy.

His fingers dug into the upholstery and he kicked his heels against the couch, but he somehow managed to remain seated.

He bit down his tongue to prevent another yelp of joy to escape his mouth when Splinter opened the bag and emptied it on the floor.

Last week there had been an action figure in the pile. What could it be today?

He and his brothers waited respectfully until Splinter had stepped back, but this was the sign that they could go through the pile now and look what they wanted to have, and they all lunged for the pile.

Something immediately caught Mikey's eye, some sort of colorful paper, and he managed to reach it before Raph did and pressed his little treasure against his plastron to keep it safe from Raph.

Raph looked a bit angry, but then got distracted by a red toy car.

Miky pressed what turned out to be a comic book a little tighter against his plastron, just in case.

* * *

Back in his room he couldn't wait to start reading. Okay, his reading skills maybe weren't the best, but hey, he was only seven years old, not to mention that he had started out as a pet turtle and his name wasn't Donatello.

It took him a while to get into it, but pretty soon he had figured out what the story of the comic book was about. It was about this man who wore blue pajamas and a red cape and who was super-strong and could fly and saved innocent people.

* * *

Later that night when Splinter checked on his sons, he found Michelangelo jumping up and down on his bed, wearing his baby blanket as a cape.

"Michelangelo, what are you doing?" he asked.

"I want to fly!"

Splinter frowned. "What makes you think you can fly, my son?"

"Because I'm Super Mikey!"


	10. Awesome Little Creatures

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_For an anon who asked for "Irma" and "nightmares"._

* * *

**Awesome Little Creatures**

_"__You're right, Aristotle. She is the perfect test subject."_

_The dark figure was moving towards her, and a pale, bony hand was reaching for her face, coming closer and closer._

_Irma tried to back away, pressing her back against the cold bars of her cage, but the hand was moving closer unaffectedly. _

_Irma squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head to the side. But she knew it was of no use. It was a lost cause. _

_She held her breath, bracing for the inevitable._

_This hand, looking more dead than alive, it was about to touch her face. It was about to touch her face! It was about to…_

Irma awoke with a start, panting for air.

_The Rat King!_, she thought as she buried her face in her hands.

Weeks had passed since she had been his prisoner, and still, this nightmare haunted her every now and then.

Rats had always been such interesting animals for her with their similarities they shared with humans. And she was thankful for what they did to mankind because of these similarities. It was the reason for them being used in scientific experiments.

Sure, it couldn't be that great for most of the rats, considering that some of them died in the process, but for Irma, that was a reason to be even more thankful. At least that was what she thought. If no one was admiring their work, she would.

Or would have.

It was difficult now because whenever she saw a rat, the first thing that came to her mind was the Rat King, making her body flinch with painful memory.

She did her best to overcome this, to look at rats without the Rat King lingering in the back of her head. And she was doing a little better now than she had at the beginning, but it still was hard.

She took a deep breath and realized that her heart rate was at a normal pace again.

As she lied back on the mattress she did her best to push the last remains of her nightmare as far away as she could.

_Maybe tomorrow I can see rats as what they truly are again_, she thought as she closed her eyes. _Awesome little creatures._


	11. Captured

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_For an anon who asked for "Irma" and "questions"._

* * *

**Captured**

Irma sat down on the cot, burying her face in her hands. As much as she loved the color purple, all this purple light in here was making her dizzy. She looked over to the small observation window in the cell door, but quickly turned her head away again when she caught one of these strange robots with the brains in their bellies looking inside.

Her heart started pounding like mad.

_Please go away_, she thought. _Please leave me alone!_

When she risked another peek moments later, she realized the robot was gone again.

She breathed a sigh of relief, knowing the relief wouldn't last longer than the time it took her to finish that breath.

She was locked in a purple cell after all.

And what was even more disturbing, she had no idea why.

This morning when she had left her apartment building, only wearing a scarf – the cold had never been a problem for her, winter, snow, she didn't care – these strange men in business suits that she first had taken for triplets had walked up to her and the same second a van had stopped next to her.

And before she could ask them what they wanted, they had grabbed her. She had struggled, she had struggled a lot, but within seconds they had gagged her and tied her hands up, and the next thing she remembered was being tossed into that van.

After a drive that had felt like it had been going on forever, she had been brought into her cell. On their way she had seen so many other business men that all looked just the same, so she had abandoned her triplets-theory. And there had been these robots, too, these robots with brains in their bellies, strange looking brains with faces.

And then she had been thrown into her cell and stayed there ever since.

Not a word what they wanted from her, no interrogation, no nothing.

They checked on her every now and then, but that was it.

So Irma was alone in her cell, alone with all her questions.

Why had she been kidnapped?

What did they want from her?

Why didn't they tell her anything?

And the most important question of all: Was she going to survive this?


	12. The Merits of Being Young

__For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)__

_This is for unclekoopus who asked for "Splinter" and "Young Again". :)_

* * *

**The Merits of Being Young**

Donatello was slouching on the couch, his head resting on his arms. One could think that he was just watching TV, but Splinter knew better.

There was this tiny frown on Donnie's face, and the fact that his expression didn't change when the theme song of his favorite science show was playing – something that usually made his face lighten up – was proof enough to Splinter that his son was being sad.

And he could imagine what was making Donnie this sad.

April and Casey had been here for the afternoon. That alone wasn't unusual, they did that quite often. What was unusual was that they had left to go to the movies together – a date, how Casey had called it, although April had denied it and had said that Irma would have joined them if she hadn't caught the flu.

Now Donnie was obviously racking his brains if they really were on a date now and if April had feelings for Casey.

His heart must be aching, and Splinter knew this feeling all too well.

The bittersweet taste of first love, the hope, the desperation, the sleepless nights, all his thoughts only circling around her. Everything was new and precious. Even the feeling that one's heart was falling apart was special.

Yes, Splinter could remember it, all of it. And so he knew that one day this kind of love was replaced by something more mature. But no one ever forgot his first love. He knew he hadn't.

And sometimes he even thought about wanting to experience it all once again, of being young again when there were so many new things to discover, so many things to learn.

He knew that there still were things he could learn and had to learn. But as he got older, they became fewer and fewer.

And when one was young, the world was so full of wonders! Those were the merits of being young, those were the things Splinter missed sometimes.

But when he saw a single tear running down Donatello's cheek he knew that things were good the way they were. Because if he really were young again, he would lack the wisdom to tell his son that things were going to get better, that it would get easier and that he knew that from experience – like he was going to do now.


	13. Only Her Father

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_For an anon who asked for "Karai" and "family"._

* * *

**Only Her Father**

Karai hated to admit it, but there was one thing she envied the turtles for – they had a family. No, they _were_ a family.

Four brothers and a loving father, not related by blood, but related by heart. And she knew how much they cared for each other, how much they loved each other.

She had seen it on that rooftop when Tiger Claw had captured the turtles. She had seen that Leonardo would have done anything to save his baby brother – as would have the others. She had watched how Splinter had thrown himself into a fight with Tiger Claw to save his sons, how he had risked his life, all these feelings in his eyes, the love for his sons, the fear that they could get hurt.

It had touched her heart the teeniest-tiniest bit, although she would never admit it.

She couldn't remember anything about her mother, although there were nights she tried really hard to. It never worked, though. So all she had left was her father. And Shredder never showed his love for her so obviously. She knew he loved her, she knew he cared for her, but he would never hug her or smile at her. They were only glimpses of his love shown in his eyes sometimes, and only she was able to see it. And sometimes, he put a hand on her shoulder. And that was it.

That was how Shredder showed his love for his daughter. And for many years it had been enough. Or at least she had thought so.

But seeing how the turtles and their rat-father cared for each other had awoken the envy deep inside her, had reminded her that maybe she needed a bit more than Shredder's signs of affection.

And then they had welcomed this stupid April O'Neil in their family! This girl was so special, it made Karai sick. The only fact about April O'Neil she could sympathize with was that she had lost her mother just like Karai had. But except from that, Karai hated her for being so perfect. She hated her for having friends, for all this love she was shown.

April O'Neil had friends, she had a family.

Karai only had her father.


	14. Aching

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for honorsexual-leonardo who asked for "Leo" and "sickness/pain". :)_

* * *

**Aching**

There had only been darkness, warm, muffling darkness. No pain.

The pain had started when he had opened his eyes. And it hadn't ended from then on. It was still there, with every movement, every breath he took. It felt like even the blood rushing in his veins was causing pain.

The mutagen-medicine Donnie had manufactured for him made him sick. As soon as the liquid touched his taste buds he gagged, wanted to puke, and sometimes, he couldn't do anything against it. But Donnie said it would help him, so he tried really hard to swallow it and keep it down. He managed, most of the times, but it still made him sick.

It didn't matter, though.

His pain, his sickness, it didn't matter. Not anymore.

He was staring into the flames of the chimney fire.

They wouldn't have told him. They hadn't wanted to tell him. But he had asked, and they had answered.

_Where's Master Splinter?_

The insecure looks they had shared, the uneasy shifting, how they had avoided his eyes.

Until April had spoken up. It was always April, being the bravest in moments like this, the one that was able to say the words everyone else refused to say.

_He was battling Shredder. And…Shredder managed to beat him. He threw him into a drainage. That was the last we've seen of him. But he was alive then, and he still is! I know it!_

His brothers had nodded in affirmation. And Leo had let it pass.

There was nothing he could do anyway. He couldn't go back to New York to look for his father.

Not now. Not while he was still in pain.

He needed to heal first, to get back in shape. It would take a while.

He took a deep breath and it felt like his lungs were on fire or like he was breathing in fire. It hurt.

Pain, again.

And he needed to get past this pain.

But there was one pain he couldn't overcome – the pain deep inside his heart. All of Donnie's medicine wouldn't be able to make this pain go away. It was the pain caused by the fact that maybe he had lost his father, that he didn't know anything about his whereabouts, that he was missing him.

This was what made his heart aching.

And it hurt more than all his wounds and bruises ever could.


	15. One Very Important Question

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for an anon who asked for "April" and "question". :)_

* * *

**One Very Important Question **

April O'Neil was sixteen years old. A normal teenage girl, interested in boys and make-up, one might presume.

And sometimes April wished that was the truth. But it wasn't. As said before, she was far from being normal.

She was the key to an alien invasion, an alien-human-mutant hybrid, so she wasn't even totally human.

But there was one thing that made her life a little bit normal – someone had a crush on her.

Well, the fact that this someone was a mutant turtle made it a bit less normal again, but she could live with that.

It had taken her a while to figure out that Donatello's weird behavior towards her sometimes was caused by the fact that he had a crush on her. She ignored it most of the times or acted like she didn't notice. But she noticed. She noticed everything.

The problem was that she wasn't sure what she felt for Donnie. He was important to her, really important.

But Donnie was starting to get impatient. That was the reason why he had made this music box for her. He wanted an answer from her, especially now that Casey was around and that she and Casey had gotten really close.

April wasn't sure if Casey saw more in her than a friend, but Donnie was worried. And so he got impatient, wanting an answer from her like right now.

But April was far from letting him push her into something she wasn't ready for yet.

He wanted an answer, but she couldn't give him one yet. There were so many things going on already, and she needed more time.

But she didn't want him to give up on her.

That was the reason why she had kissed him – to show him that there was hope. There always was hope.

She just needed time, time to figure out the answer to one very important question.

Did she return Donnie's feelings?


	16. The Perfect Gift

__For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)__

_This is for bloodyredpancakes who asked for "Donatello" and "chocolate". :)_

* * *

**The Perfect Gift**

Donnie held his breath while he poured the sweet, thick liquid into the chocolate molds. And as always when he was concentrating, he stuck his tongue out – a thing he hadn't realized yet and maybe never would. But it was so Donnie. It was just him.

Finished with filling the chocolate molds he took a deep, relieved breath. Done, finally.

It had taken him weeks to figure out the perfect recipe for these chocolates, April's chocolates. And now they were perfect, the perfect gift.

He knew it wasn't Valentine's Day, and he considered himself lucky, it wasn't. It would have been too obvious that way.

But now, it was just a friend giving his friend chocolates. No special occasion, just because the friend wanted to.

He smiled and sniffed, breathing in the sweet scent of chocolate with a slight whiff of mint.

Yes, this was the perfect recipe, and yes, it had taken weeks to figure it out, failure had been following failure, it had never turned out the way he wanted it to be. It had been good, agreed, but not perfect. Not worthy for an April O'Neil.

It had never been a failure for Mikey, though, because he had always been allowed to eat the failed chocolates. Although Donnie had never told him they had been failures. He had just told him that he had made chocolates because he had felt like doing so.

His brothers made enough fun of him already because of his crush on April. They didn't need to know everything.

And now these chocolates were perfect, Donnie thought as he put them into the fridge to cool down, and smiled.

All he could do now was waiting until they were ready and he could press them out of the molds and put them into the chocolate box he had made. Or maybe he could add some more decoration to that box while waiting. The box and everything he needed for that were in his lab.

He nodded and left the kitchen.

* * *

When he came back later, he found Mikey sitting at the table and munching on something.

Donnie didn't really care, but when he opened the fridge he froze.

The chocolates, they were gone!

Then it dawned on him and he slowly, really slowly turned to face Mikey.

And there it was – the proof.

Mikey's mouth was smeared with chocolate, and he smiled.

"These ones were really good!" he said, his voice still a bit muffled by the chocolate in his mouth.

All Donnie wanted to do now was punch his little brother really, really hard, but he couldn't. It would give him away.

So he just nodded and whispered, "Thanks!"

And then he left, left for the lab where an empty chocolate box with a really beautiful decoration would stay empty for a little longer.

Maybe he should stay in the kitchen next time.


	17. No One Knew

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for an anon who asked for "Irma" and "sorrow". :)_

* * *

**No One Knew**

Irma always did her best to keep her guard up, to be what she was supposed to be – an intelligent girl, loveable, nice, with a sharp intellect. For some she was a geek. Some didn't like it when she managed to detect their lies and real motives so easily, but that was her, if they liked it or not.

This was the Irma she had chosen to be.

All these years ago, she had made this decision, this day, when she had locked away the sorrow about her loss deep inside her where no one could find it, except for her. And sometimes, even she forgot about it.

But it was there, and every now and then it managed to creep out of its cell and overwhelm her, and she gave in to the aching, the pain, the tears for a little while. But then she fought the sorrow back where it belonged.

It belonged in this cell Irma had built inside her, just for her sorrow to lock it away.

No one needed to know about it, no one needed to know about what had caused it.

And no one knew.

Not even April, her best friend for a year now.

No one knew, but Irma – and sometimes, she wished she didn't know either.


	18. Not Only Friends

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for an anon who asked for "family" and "April". :)_

_By the way, I got several requests in reviews here on FanFiction. Just to remind you, this is a TUMBLR-challenge, so if you have requests, please send them via ask there. Thank you! ^^_

* * *

**Not Only Friends**

April was sitting on the couch. It was Friday and this meant: movie night! It had become a weekly habit of her and her new friends to watch a movie together every Friday.

Leo and Raph were having an argument about what movie to watch while Donnie tried to prevent them from jumping at each other's throats. Mikey was in the kitchen, preparing their snacks, and luckily, they had been able to talk him out of trying something new and instead settle for popcorn and pizza gyoza like they usually had on their movie night.

So everything was normal. Well, as normal as being friends with mutant turtles living in the sewers could be.

But something was new, although April couldn't quite put her finger on it. Something was different, but different in a good way.

There was this feeling in her stomach, this warm, calming feeling.

And the moment Mikey walked into the living room, had a seat next to her and offered her some popcorn, it struck her.

This feeling was about feeling safe, one-hundred percent safe.

She had only felt it before with her father.

This feeling she had only felt with her family.

With a smile she took some popcorn and shoved it into her mouth.

_Looks like they aren't only friends to me_, she thought. _They're family._


	19. Hold It Down

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for an anon who asked for "April" and "Dare (as in the Gorillaz' song)". :)_

* * *

**Hold It Down**

April was used to show her feelings. She never had to choke an emotion before. She had always showed her feelings freely, without doubts, without second thoughts.

But now there was this voice inside her head.

_You know you can't do it_, this voice would say. _You've always been bad at it._

_I am not bad at it_, she would answer. _I can do it. And I will!_

_Well, then_, the voice would continue. _Prove it. Hold it down, this precious feeling of yours. Dare!_

And then she would hold it down. Because she had to. No matter how mocking this voice was, it was right. She had to hold this one feeling down because now was not the time for it. It would hurt others if she let it out. So she held it down with all her strength.

And the voice kept mocking her, telling her she couldn't do it, daring her.

But so far she succeeded. And she would continue succeeding because she had to. Until the time was right.

April just hoped that the time would be right for it one day. She really, really hoped.


	20. Obedience

_For my drabble-challenge over on tumblr; for more info, please check my profile here. ;)_

_This is for purplefern who asked for "Bradford" and "family". :)_

* * *

**Obedience**

Chris Bradford had no family. Not anymore. The day he had become Shredder's pupil, Shredder had told him to give up on his family. And he had obeyed.

Shredder was his master. He commanded, and Chris obeyed. This was what subordinates did. They obeyed.

It took some of them years to learn their lesson in obedience. Chris had mastered the first time. He had mastered it when he had left his family just because Shredder had told him to do so.

And he would do it again. Without hesitation.

He knew his family was out there, alive, hopefully. He still thought about them every once in a while.

Thinking about them wasn't disobeying Shredder. Thoughts were upon obedience. No one could control them. He knew because he had tried.

But sometimes, a thought slipped through the invisible wall he had built and made its way to his family. And it was okay, because as long as it was only thoughts, it wasn't disobedience.

And as long as it was feelings he didn't show it wasn't disobedience either.

That was the reason he never showed his true feelings when it came to his family. Because he missed them.

And Shredder was never going to find out. Chris was Shredder's best pupil and he would never disobey his master.


	21. Born Leader

_This is for an anon who asked for "Leo" and "leader". _

* * *

**Born Leader**

_Because you asked._

Splinter's words were still floating around in Leo's head. And he didn't like it. He was leader now because he had asked. It could have been any of them – except for Mikey, which "would have been wrong" how Splinter had put it – if they only had asked before him, if they only had been faster.

He wasn't leader because he had deserved it, he wasn't leader because he had deservedly earned it.

He was leader because he had _asked_.

He sighed. This didn't feel quite right. He would have preferred that Splinter had chosen him because he had been the best for the job.

He sat up in his bed and hugged his knees, heaving another sigh, thinking this through for the hundredth time.

Well, he had been the first to ask, and it had felt right to ask. And the others hadn't been as fast.

His eyes widened.

Hey, maybe this was it! The others hadn't felt the urge to ask, they hadn't been fast enough because it hadn't felt right for them.

Yes, he was leader because he had asked. But maybe he had asked because he had been the right one for this job, because he was a born leader.

With a smile he let himself fall back onto the mattress.

He had asked to be leader because it had been his fate.

His smile deepened.

Yeah, he could live with that.


	22. Please Wake Up

_This is for hamato-oroku-rebellion who asked for "Raph and Leo" and "brotherly love"._

* * *

**Please Wake Up**

Raph leaned forward on his stool, reducing the distance between his face and Leo's, watching him closely, scanning his face, his beaten, broken face for a sign that he would wake up soon.

But he couldn't find any.

With a frustrated sigh he leaned back again.

Maybe, if he concentrated really, really hard, Leo would wake up. He squeezed his eyes shut, furrowed his brow, and thought "Please wake up!" over and over again, but when he opened his eyes again, Leo was still out like a light.

He bit his lower lip. He should have known better. But still, he had hoped against hope that this would work.

He felt the tears prickle in his eyes, but he blinked them away.

It was more difficult than the nights before, though. The tears were definitely trying to fight their way free tonight.

Raph took a deep breath and listened if there were any movements in the house. It was late already, so the others most probably had gone to bed, but he had to be sure before he could let these tears flow.

The farmhouse was silent, dead silent, and Raph quickly checked on Leo if he was still breathing at this thought.

With a sigh of relief, he realized he was, and this was the moment, when Raph finally allowed the tears to break free. They were running down his cheeks, dropping to the floor, but this was a bathroom, so no one would even realize that it was tears and not just water.

He was sobbing by now, but not too loudly, because he had to be sure that no one would hear. His brothers were ninjas, they could wake at the slightest sound. Only Leo was allowed to hear him cry, and if it would wake Leo up, Raph would be more than happy about it.

But when Raph had calmed down, Leo was still unconscious.

Raph let out a long breath.

"Leo," he whispered. "I am not sure if you can hear me, but if you do, I want you to know that we need you. So please…please wake up, okay? It's not the same without you. Really, Leo, we _need_ you." He hesitated before he went on. "_I_ need you," he added.

He inhaled sharply before he let the rest of the words that had been lingering in his head for such a long time out.

"You're my brother, Leo, and you know I'd do anything for my family, you know that, don't you? I'd go through hell and back if I had to. And I…I love you."

Again, Leo didn't react. Although Raph couldn't help, but wonder if it was just his imagination or if it really looked like Leo was smiling a bit.


	23. Cold

_This is for ilovebeinganinjaturtle who asked for "Leo and Raph" and "warmth"._

* * *

**Cold**

Leo and Raph were seated on the couch, watching TV together. Donnie and Mikey had long gone to bed, but Raph and Leo had some other rivalry going on – who would go to bed first. And none of them wanted to lose.

Raph had to admit, though, that it was really hard because the movie they were watching was super-boring – Leo's pick, of course. Raph would have picked something with more explosions and fighting, maybe even blood.

He suppressed the fifth yawn in thirty minutes. He couldn't let his tiredness show.

He shot a side glance at Leo to make sure that he hadn't realized anything. Leo's eyes were still glued to the TV, so Raph was in the clear.

But there was something about Leo that caught Raph's attention. He had pulled his knees to his chin and hugged them, and was he shivering?

"You cold, Leo?" Raph asked.

"A bit," Leo confessed.

Raph knew that the living area could be rather cold at night, and he was the tiniest bit cold himself. So he shifted closer to Leo, wrapping an arm around Leo's shoulder, all while he kept his eyes on the TV.

He could feel Leo looking at him.

"A bit cold myself," Raph said without looking at his brother. "If you tell the others, I'll beat the green off of you, understood?"

Leo chuckled a bit. "Raph, you really need to look for a new threatening line, this one's getting old."

Raph shrugged. "I don't mind as long as it works."

And then they concentrated on the TV again.

* * *

The next morning, Donnie and Mikey found their older brothers cuddled together on the couch.

They were making fun of them for at least two weeks which made Raph furious, but he couldn't even beat the green off of Leo because he hadn't told anyone.

So he had to make do with the practice dummy and smacking Mikey on the back of his head every now and then. It was annoying, yes, but still, when Raph thought about that night, he always remembered the feeling, the warmth in his stomach and how it had made the coldness of the living area fade away. And this made the teasing at least a little bit easier.


	24. Not Much Longer

_For an anon who asked for "Irma Langinstein" and "prisoner"._

* * *

**Not Much Longer**

Irma Langinstein was a prisoner. She had been for a long time now. Forty-three days, to be exact.

She leaned against the cold wall.

In four minutes, the guards would make their second round. Then she'd have three hours and fifty-two minutes before the next round – if nothing unexpected would pop up.

And there hasn't been anything unexpected happened in the last twenty-six days.

She had hoped that this would make the guards drop their watchfulness a bit. This would make things a bit easier for her. But that hadn't happened.

They were aliens in robot bodies, so it wasn't that big of a surprise.

She still had hoped for it, though. Things were complicated enough for her already, but she could deal with a non-dropping guards-watchfulness if she had to. And she had to.

So that was how things were, and it would be a waste of time and brain power to hope for things that weren't going to happen.

That moment, the two guards went by, casting a glance into her cell. She didn't look up, but she knew that they checked her and her cell carefully.

When she heard departing footsteps, she looked up again. She waited a minute and fifty-three seconds longer to be sure that they were gone, before she went back to the cell door.

Crouching down, her fingers searched for the part of the door where she had managed to remove a little part of the panel. She had been working on that for twenty-one days now, and finally she had reached some of the cables of the inner workings of the mechanic door.

Yes, she was a prisoner. But she wasn't going to be for much longer.


	25. Victim

_This is for an anon who asked for "Irma" and "hostage"._

* * *

**Victim**

Irma sighed as she looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. Her face was still dripping, so she took a towel to dry it.

Right now, without her glasses, her face looked so different to her, a bit blurred and hazy, but that was okay. She knew what her face looked like. She knew every bit of it.

What she didn't know was what others saw in her. Did people think she looked beautiful?

She thought she looked good, and she loved her make-up and her purple lipstick.

But she had heard other things.

Before her family had moved to New York, back in her old school, her schoolmates had picked on her, called her ugly and four-eyes and other "nice" things. She had cried a lot back then.

But her parents had assured her that she was beautiful, but still, what these other kids had called her had gnawed on her.

But then her family had moved to New York and she had met April.

And now she felt more confident about herself.

But the recent events made her a bit insecure again.

First, there had been this Rat King who had kidnapped her to use her as a test object. And today, she had had this terrible dream of a Chinese sorcerer who had held her captive.

So did people see her as a victim again? Did they pick her because of what they saw in her? Easy prey? No real resistance?

She sighed again as she reached for her glasses, put them on and looked at her now clear image in the mirror.

What she saw was her, just her, Irma Langinstein.

But what did others see?

If they really saw her as a victim again, did she have to look out now that she wouldn't get taken hostage by a street gang on her way to school?

It would only be a logical development, considering the recent events.

She shook her head lightly on her way out of the bathroom.

Maybe she should ask April if they could attend a self-defense course or something.


	26. No Friends

_This is for Sandy Graves who asked for "Casey" and "family". ^^_

* * *

**No Friends**

Casey had made one very clear rule all these years ago.

Casey Jones had no friends.

He had his flirts, his ice hockey buddies, but that was pretty much it. He never talked about deep topics with them. He told his flirts how beautiful they were and how much he liked them, and he talked sports with his ice hockey buddies.

Never letting anyone too close or even letting them get a glimpse of his real self – again –, that was his plan.

He had done this once, back with Nick, his best friend since second grade. Nick had been a real friend, but after this one fateful hockey game, Nick had never spoken to him again.

And so Casey had decided, he didn't need friends.

Until April had shown up and had turned from a flirt to something he couldn't quite name.

And then he had met Raph and the guys which really had made it difficult to stick with his rule.

Casey let his eyes wander over the lair, looking at Donnie, April, Leo, Mikey, and finally Raph.

A warm feeling spread inside him, and he quickly turned back to the TV – it was movie night, after all – before anyone could catch him staring.

But the longer he sat there, the more he realized how comfortable he felt here, sitting in the living room of the lair and watching a spectacular action movie. He felt at home.

A small smile appeared on his face.

No, Casey Jones had no friends.

He had a family.


	27. Leader

_This is for an anon who asked for "Mighty Mutanimals/Slash" and "difficulty". ^^_

* * *

**Leader**

Slash had never thought of himself as a leader, at least not a good one.

But ever since Pigeon Pete had landed before his feet diving for an old loaf of bread, things had changed completely.

Pete needed guidance because he had this tendency to get himself into trouble. And since he had been following Slash around from that day on, it had been Slash's trouble too. So he had started to look after Pete, first to spare himself the trouble of nearly getting killed, then he had grown used to it.

And the funny thing was that others had seemed to be willing to join the weird duo Slash and Pete were.

First, Rockwell had joined them, adding his expertise to their little group.

And last, but not least Leatherhead had shown up.

Somehow, they had grown together although Slash still wasn't sure how that exactly had happened. Their wish to destroy the Kraang had probably united them, he presumed, but he could be wrong.

The thing was a group as theirs needed a leader. Originally, Slash had thought that Leatherhead would take over the job, but then he had realized that Leatherhead's anger issues could be quite problematic. And after all these years of living with Raph, who if not Slash would know better how to manage this?

But not only Leatherhead's temper was difficult, there was this other difficulty of Pete's hyperactivity and obsession with bread and Rockwell's need for peace and silence and his hate for dumb questions. This didn't always go together. And again, it usually was Slash who had to settle their differences – or keep Rockwell from trying to kill Pete, it depended, really.

And it somehow worked. They as a group worked. The Mighty Mutanimals worked.

Slash still wasn't sure if he was a good leader. But he might be getting there.


	28. Special

_For thewinterme who asked for "Ice Cream Kitty" and "Enamored". :)_

* * *

**Special**

There were a few things Ice Cream Kitty loved – sleeping, jostling some ice cubes around the ice compartment, playing with Mikey, getting petted by Mikey, watching Crognard with Mikey.

But there was only one thing that made her go all overjoyed.

Ice Cream Kitty was shifting uneasily, waiting for the fridge to be opened. She had heard this voice moments ago. So what was taking so long?

She gave a pitiful meow, and suddenly, finally, the fridge's door opened.

"Oh, hi there, Kitty!" April greeted her, put a finger under the cat's chin and rubbed it gently.

Kitty replied with a silent purr.

"So, how are you doing today?"

Another purr was the reply, followed by a meow.

"Oh, I'm fine, too," April said.

There was a sound from afar.

"I gotta go," April announced and quickly patted Ice Cream Kitty's head. "Be a nice little kitty!"

And the fridge was closed again.

Ice Cream Kitty was still purring as she curled up and closed her eyes.

Yes, Mikey was her best friend, but April, April was special.


	29. Water

_This is for BelatedBeliever1127 who asked for "Raphael" and "Rain". Hope you like it! ^^_

* * *

**Water**

Raphael loved water. Of course he did. He was a turtle, a mutant turtle, admittedly, but still.

He loved the feel of water on his skin. That was the reason why swimming was so great.

Swimming in the sewers, on the other hand, wasn't. The water was dirty and smelled funny.

Raph wished Donnie would install a swimming pool in the lair, but of course he hadn't asked Donnie for it. He was Raphael, the tough guy. Tough guys never asked for anything.

There still was the shower, and he loved the shower. His showers had always taken quite long, but he had shortened it when his brothers had made funny jokes about what he could be doing in there.

So all that was left was rain. Rain was awesome. Whenever it rained at night, Raph snuck out of the lair just to stand on a rooftop and let the rain wash down his body.

It also helped when Raph was angry – like he was today.

Really, what had Leo been thinking?

Instead of patrolling the city each and every night, he had canceled the patrol tonight and set up a special training for tomorrow morning. Like this would help defeating their enemies!

They should be out there, fighting the Kraang and all the other scum that was prowling the streets, but no, instead they had _training_!

Raph took a deep breath, pushing these thoughts away. Instead he concentrated on the water running down his body and cooling his temper.

Water was amazing.

Rain was amazing.


	30. A Weapon

_This is for Sandy Graves who asked for "Leo" and "angry"._

* * *

**A Weapon**

Leo had a lot of issues with Raph's anger – that it was unpredictable, that it made Raph lose track of everything, that it could put Raph and the rest of the team into danger. Again.

But the main issue was that Leo knew what it was like to be this angry.

Because Leo was angry, too, each and every day.

But unlike Raph, Leo knew how to keep his anger at bay. He buried it under layers of calm and self-control, pushing it down with all his strength.

It was hard, it was really hard sometimes, but he managed.

Raph on the other hand was unable to handle his anger, and this made Leo even angrier.

But he could bury this anger as well, deep in his body, so deep, he himself didn't always know for sure where it was hidden. But it was there. And he was aware of it all the time.

And there were moments when he let it out, dosed, controlled, and only when he needed its force for a fight.

His anger was burning so bright, it sometimes hurt to let it out. But it was a controlled flame, only burning what he wanted it to burn.

Raph's anger, on the other hand, was like a volcano, dangerous, irrational, and burning everything on its way, no matter if it was friend or foe.

Raph's anger was a force of nature.

Leo's anger was a weapon.


	31. Step by Step

_This is for an anon who asked for "Mikey" and "steps"._

* * *

**Step by Step**

Mikey has never been known for doing things one step at a time. He was known for rushing through several steps, even skipping a step or two and sometimes even all of them. Mikey was known for improvising, not for being a step-by-step-kind of guy.

But today was different. Today he had to go through every working step thoughtfully. Today it mattered.

He let his finger glide over the page of the baker's book. Yes, this seemed correct. With a smile he filled the dough into the baking pan and put it into the oven.

Half an hour later he took it out, and he smiled on how delicious the little cake looked. And it smelled even better!

Humming to himself he got to work on the frosting.

When he was done he put the cake on a plate and went upstairs.

Carefully, he opened the door to the bathroom and entered.

"Hi Leo!" he said with a smile. "I made you a Get Well Soon-cake. I thought you might like it."

He walked over to the bath tub and held the cake out to Leo.

But Leo didn't react. He just kept lying there in the water. And the only movement was the lifting and lowering of his chest, showing that he at least was breathing.

"Of course you don't have to eat right now," Mikey continued, the smile on his face faltering a bit. "I'll just leave it here, okay?" He put the cake on the floor.

Then he mustered his brother's face again, but he still was unconscious.

That was the moment when Mikey's smile faded completely. With a sigh he sat down on the floor next to the cake and leaned his carapace against the bath tub.

"Just tell me when you've changed your mind, okay?"

He pulled up his knees, hugged them and waited.

* * *

Hours later, Raph found Mikey fast asleep next to the bath tub. Next to him was a cake with blue frosting and the words "Get Well Soon!" written on it with sugar glaze.

Raph bit down his lip and took the cake without waking Mikey. He ate it all at once, stuffing it in his mouth rather quickly. It was good, really good, but it wasn't about the taste, although Raph couldn't help, but wonder how Mikey managed to make such a great cake. The only other cake Mikey had ever made was the worms and algae-cake on their fifteenth mutation day.

No, this was about Mikey.

Raph would later tell him that Leo must have sleep-eaten the cake and that this was a good sign for Leo's recovery.

It would make Mikey smile, it would give him hope, and he would cheer them all up with his good mood.

This was what it was about, giving Mikey hope, giving Mikey a reason to smile.

Although the cake really was delicious. Raph had to give Mikey that.


	32. A Mystery

_This is for an anon who asked for "Donnie" and "speed". _

* * *

**A Mystery**

Speed had always been clear to Donnie. He knew the formula for speed, he knew what certain miles per hour did to the body. So generally speaking, speed was totally logical to him, easy.

On the other hand, speed had always been a mystery to Donnie. The way the promise of speed made his heart jump, the way the airstream made his skin prickle, there was no logical explanation for that, no formula. He knew that because he had tried to develop a formula, but it had failed him each and every time. Either his heart didn't start pounding fast enough or too fast or the prickle on his skin felt too intense or not intense enough.

There was only one thing he knew for sure. He liked speed. No, he loved it!


	33. At Times Like This

_This is for mutanimalfangirl who asked for "Slash" and "guilt". _

* * *

**At Times Like This**

Standing on the rooftop, Slash let his hand slide over his face as if he could swipe away these horrible memories. It didn't work, of course. He sighed. Then he continued staring out into the darkness.

He heard him approaching. And he saw from the corner of his eyes how he came to a stand next to him. He didn't move, and neither did Raphael.

They just stood there and stared into the night together.

Raphael had never been a turtle of big words and emotional stuff.

And he didn't have to.

His presence alone made Slash feel a bit better.

"You know it isn't your fault, right?" Raphael said after a while. "It was the brain worm. It was Shredder."

No, he had never been a turtle of big words, and you had to be able to read between the lines to find the message hidden within.

_I don't blame you for attacking my family._

This hidden message, it makes the horrible memories fade just a little.

"You do know that, right?" Raphael repeated after a few more moments. "Don't you, Spike? I … I mean, Slash!"

Slash chuckled and turned to his friend, his brother.

He placed a hand on Raphael's shoulder and smiled at him. Raphael looked back at him with big questioning eyes.

"You know, Raphael," Slash said warmly, "at times like this, 'Spike' is just fine."


	34. Not Afraid

_This is for an anon who asked for "Tiger Claw" and "fierce"._

* * *

Tiger Claw wasn't afraid. He couldn't be afraid, he was a predator, a hunter, a dangerous foe.

So he forced this feeling that could be anything, but fear down.

He was dangerous, fierce, he was feared by others, but did not fear them.

And whatever it was that made the hair on his neck stand up, it was just some leftover instinct from the time when he had just been a tiger, a stupid beast to which all that mattered was surviving the day.

Surviving the day was still among the top ten on his list, but there were other things now, too. He had responsibilities, he had to keep his reputation. And fear wasn't part of that.

So he ignored the feeling once more as he loaded his guns and snuck around the corner, and only then, he realized that it was too late. They had waited for him.

* * *

It was the day of his greatest shame, the day he lost his tail. He'd never forget it. And he never forgot to listen to his instincts from this day on.


End file.
